The Russians are here, like it or not
The Russians are racking up medals and sparking resentment in Tokyo.
On Thursday, four-time U.S. Olympic rower Megan Kalmoe lashed out in frustration on social media after Russian rivals Vasilisa Stepanova and Elena Oriabinskaia pocketed silver medals in the women's pair event.
“Seeing a crew who shouldn't even be here walk away with a silver is a nasty feeling,” she wrote on Twitter. “Really disappointing overall and I feel for the other athletes in the (final race). Big love to all my friends and frenemies who gave it everything out there.”
Kalmoe doubled down on those comments to row2k.com, adding, “I don't think that they should have been here, and there are a lot of women here that I think were very qualified to win one of those medals, and them not having that opportunity because that boat was here was very problematic for me as a competitor.”
Canada's Caileigh Filmer and Hillary Janssens finished third in the race, one spot behind the Russians.
The Russians brought a huge team of athletes — 335, to be exact — for a country that is officially banned from competition for running a widespread state-sponsored doping scheme.
The World Anti-doping Agency originally handed down a fouryear Olympic penalty for expert rule-breaking, but that was sawed in half in late 2020, and now runs through the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Athletes who were considered not to be part of the longest-running doping train are still eligible to compete at the Olympics, but only as neutrals.
So when they win, while they aren't afforded all the usual ceremonial trappings, the real punitive impact of their nation's recent history boils down to nothing more than a minor technicality.
Instead of the anthem, the gold medallists hear a Tchaikovsky piano concerto. There is no Russia or its flag, only the Russian Olympic Committee, or “ROC” for short, though its familiar red, blue and white colours lessen that shame.
“We at WADA remain disappointed that the (Court of Arbitration for Sport) has decreased the level of the sanctions from four years to two years and that CAS allows them to compete (as) Russian athletes with the colours of the flag in the uniforms,” WADA president Witold Banka said to USA Today.
Only athletics and weightlifting, the sports with the largest doping infractions, put limits on the number of Russian athletes allowed. On the fashion front, the powerhouse Russian artistic swimming team (formerly called synchronized) was miffed its swimsuit design was denied because of a depiction of a bear.
The athletes aren't here to provide their own thoughts about the bans, either. On Thursday, Tennis star Daniil Medvedev lashed out at a reporter who asked if Russian competitors carry the “cheaters” label at these Games. The No. 2 player in the world angrily tod a press officer the journalist should be removed from the tournament and the Olympics for his transgression.